Jane Grossman Stern and Michael Stern (both born 1946) are American writers who specialize in books about travel, food, and popular culture. They are best known for their '' Roadfood'' books, website, and magazine columns, in which they find road food restaurants serving classic American regional specialties and review them. Starting their hunt for regional American food in the early 1970s they were the first food writers to regard this food as being as worthy to report on as the

haute cuisine ''Haute cuisine'' (; ) or ''grande cuisine'' is a style of cooking characterised by meticulous preparation, elaborate presentation, and the use of high quality ingredients. Typically prepared by highly skilled gourmet chefs, haute cuisine dish ...

of other nations. Since the Sterns began documenting regional American food in the 1970s many other writers and television personalities have used their pioneering work as inspiration. In addition to their early work with regional American food the Sterns' book ''Square Meals'' (Knopf 1985) put "

comfort food Comfort food is food that provides a nostalgic or sentimental value to someone and may be characterized by its high caloric nature associated with childhood or home cooking. The nostalgia may be specific to an individual or it may apply to a ...

s" like mac and cheese, meatloaf, and mashed potatoes on the culinary map. ''Square Meals'' did an audacious reverse spin on the tricked up and precious

nouvelle cuisine Nouvelle cuisine (; 'new cuisine') is an approach to cooking and food presentation in French cuisine. In contrast to ''cuisine classique'', an older form of ''haute cuisine'', nouvelle cuisine is characterized by lighter, more delicate dishes and ...

that was beloved by food critics at that time. Jane Grossman grew up in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, where she attended the Walden School and received a BFA in graphic design at

Pratt Institute Pratt Institute is a private university with its main campus in Brooklyn, New York. It has an additional campus in Manhattan and an extension campus in Utica, New York at the Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute. The institute was founded in 18 ...

in Brooklyn. Michael Stern grew up in

Winnetka, Illinois Winnetka () is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, north of downtown Chicago. The population was 12,475 as of the 2020 census. The village is one of the wealthiest places in the United States in terms of household income. It was ...

, and graduated from the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

in 1968. They met as graduate students in art at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

and their first date, at Pepe's Pizza in New Haven, had a food focus. The couple married in 1970. The following year, Jane earned an MFA in painting from Yale and Michael changed schools and earned an MFA from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in film. Neither found work in their fields of study. After a short stint of producing documentaries for

WNBC WNBC (channel 4) is a television station in New York City that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Linden, New Jersey� ...

, a teaching job at

Hunter College Hunter College is a public university in New York City, United States. It is one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York and offers studies in more than one hundred undergraduate and postgraduate fields across five schools ...

and another at

Wesleyan University Wesleyan University ( ) is a Private university, private liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1831 as a Men's colleges in the United States, men's college under the Methodi ...

they began work on the book that eventually became the first ''Roadfood''. The book was conceived as a book on " truck-stop dining," funded with an advance from a publisher. The Sterns set out in their car to travel through the United States and eat up to 12 meals daily at diners and local cafes. The resulting first edition of ''Roadfood'' was published in 1977; the most recent edition was released in 2017. In addition to their food writing, the Sterns have written books on American popular culture, including ''The New York Times'' bestselling ''Elvis World'' (1987) and ''The Encyclopaedia of Bad Taste'' (1990). In all, they have written over 30 books. They were staff writers for ''

Gourmet Gourmet (, ) is a cultural idea associated with the culinary arts of fine food and drink, or haute cuisine, which is characterized by their high level of refined and elaborate food preparation techniques and displays of balanced meals that have ...

'' magazine for 18 years, have written for ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'', ''

The Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher based in Washington, D.C. It features articles on politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 ...

'', and are now contributing editors at ''

Saveur ''Saveur'' is an online gourmet, food, wine, and travel magazine that publishes essays about various world cuisines. The publication was co-founded by Dorothy Kalins, Michael Grossman, Christopher Hirsheimer, and Colman Andrews. It was started ...

''. They are regular guests on

American Public Media American Public Media (APM) is an American company that produces and distributes public radio programs in the United States, the second largest company of its type after NPR. Its non-profit parent, American Public Media Group, also owns and o ...

's public radio program, ''

The Splendid Table ''The Splendid Table'' is a weekly radio program about food hosted by Francis Lam. The program began in 1997 on Minnesota Public Radio, and was originally hosted by Lynne Rossetto Kasper until her retirement in 2017. It is produced and distribu ...

''. They have won numerous awards, including

James Beard award The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists in the United States. They are scheduled around James Beard's May 5 birthday. The media awar ...

s, and were inducted into Who's Who of Food and Beverage in America in 1992. The Sterns founde
Roadfood.com
the site was sold to Fexy Media in 2016. After the sale, the Sterns remained in charge of editorial content of their website. In 2003, Jane Stern published ''Ambulance Girl: How I Saved Myself by Becoming an EMT'', a memoir in which she described suffering from severe

clinical depression Major depressive disorder (MDD), also known as clinical depression, is a mental disorder characterized by at least two weeks of pervasive low mood, low self-esteem, and loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities. Intro ...

when she was in her early 50s and overcame her depression by training and working as an

emergency medical technician An emergency medical technician (often, more simply, EMT) is a medical professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found serving on ambulances and in fire departments in the US and Canada, as full-time and som ...

in Connecticut. In 2005 the book was made into a

television movie A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie, telefilm, telemovie or TV film/movie, is a film with a running time similar to a feature film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a Terrestr ...

, '' Ambulance Girl'', for which actress

Kathy Bates Kathleen Doyle Bates (born June 28, 1948) is an American actress. Kathy Bates filmography, Her work spans over five decades, and List of awards and nominations received by Kathy Bates, her accolades include an Academy Awards, Academy Award, t ...

was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

. The Sterns wrote a joint memoir, ''Two for the Road: Our Love Affair With American Food'', in 2006. The couple divorced in 2008; they still write as a team.Nanci G. Hutson
Local 'Roadfood' authors' divorce does not end eating partnership
''News-Times'' (Danbury, CT), Friday, July 3, 2009 Jane now lives in

Ridgefield, Connecticut Ridgefield is an affluent New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains and on the New York state border, Ridgefield had a population o ...

; Michael and his present wife, Linda, reside in

Aiken, South Carolina Aiken is the most populous city in, and the county seat of, Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. According to 2020 census, the population was 32,025, making it the 15th-most populous city in South Carolina, and one of the two largest ci ...

. In 2011 the former couple published ''The Lexicon of Real American Food'', and Jane Stern published a book on her little known but long-standing career as a

tarot card reader Tarot card reading is a form of cartomancy whereby practitioners use tarot cards to purportedly gain insight into the past, present or future. The process typically begins with formulation of a question, followed by drawing and interpreting cards ...

Bibliography

*''Trucker: A Portrait of the Last American Cowboy'' (1975, Jane Stern only) *'' Roadfood'' (1977, eighth ed. 2011) *''Amazing America'' (1978) *''Auto Ads'' (1978) *''

Douglas Sirk Douglas Sirk (born Hans Detlef Sierck; 26 April 1897 – 14 January 1987) was a German film director best known for his work in Hollywood (film industry), Hollywood melodramas of the 1950s. However, he also directed comedies, westerns, and war f ...

'' (1978, Michael Stern only) *''Horror Holiday'' (1981) *''Goodfood'' (1983) *''Square Meals'' (1985) (cookbook) *''Real American Food'' (1986) *''Elvis World'' (1987) *''A Taste of America'' (1988) *''The Encyclopedia of Bad Taste'' (1990) *''Sixties People'' (1990) *''American Gourmet'' (1991) *''Jane & Michael Stern's Encyclopedia of Pop Culture'' (1992) *''Way Out West'' (1993) *''Eat Your Way Across the USA'' (1997) *''Dog Eat Dog: A Very Human Book About Dogs and Dog Shows'' (1998) *''Two Puppies'' (1998) *''Chili Nation'' (1999) *''Blue Plate Specials and Blue Ribbon Chefs: The Heart And Soul Of America's Great Roadside Restaurants'' (2001) *''The Blue Willow Inn Cookbook: Discover Why the Best Small-Town Restaurant in the South is in Social Circle, Georgia'' (2002)(cookbook) *''The Durgin-Park Cookbook'' (2002) (cookbook) *''The Harry Caray's Restaurant Cookbook: The Official Home Plate of the Chicago Cubs'' (2003) (cookbook) *''Ambulance Girl: How I Saved Myself by Becoming an EMT'' (2003, Jane Stern only) *''Elegant Comfort Food from Dorset Inn: Traditional Cooking from Vermont's Oldest Continuously Operating Inn'' (2005, with Sissy Hicks) (cookbook) *''Two for the Road: Our Love Affair With American Food'' (2006) *''Roadfood Sandwiches: Recipes and Lore from Our Favorite Shops Coast to Coast'' (2007) (cookbook) *''500 Things to Eat Before It's Too Late: and the Very Best Places to Eat Them'' (2009) *''The Lexicon of Real American Food'' (2011) *''Confessions of a Tarot Reader: Practical Advice From This Realm and Beyond'' (2011, Jane Stern only)

References

External links

Official site: Roadfood.comEpicurious.com profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stern, Jane Living people 1946 births American food writers American memoirists American travel writers Writers from Connecticut People from Ridgefield, Connecticut Columbia University School of the Arts alumni Wesleyan University faculty University of Michigan alumni Married couples James Beard Foundation Award winners Walden School (New York City) alumni Yale University alumni